Penn State will officially be placed in the Big Ten's updated East Division, a stacked division that offers a chance to rekindle some old eastern rivalries of sorts. The new division will pit Penn State against Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana, Maryland and Rutgers. There will be no more protected crossover games, so say good bye to an annual game against Nebraska, and Wisconsin will be added to the West division so the door is open to a brand new regular season finale opponent.

Rutgers or Maryland would be kind of neat for Penn State to end the year with, but don't be surprised if this thing once again returns at the end of every season, while Rutgers and Maryland get paired in the final week.

Facebook Poll: With the new Big Ten divisions now officially announced, Penn State will have a new end-of-the-year opponent starting in 2014. Which school do you want Penn State to play in the final week of the regular season: Michigan State, Rutgers or Maryland?

I love bobble heads, and so does America. I have a small collection of my favorite Phillies and other various athletes gathered in my home office. In the mix is a Joe Paterno and Nittany Lion bobble head next to a Mickey Mouse in a baseball uniform and a Nyjer Morgan Washington Nationals bobble head. I knew it would only be a matter of time before Bill O'Brien received the bobble head treatment and it appears that wait is now over. Sort of.

StateCollege.com reports this morning Penn State's football coach will be the subject of an upcoming promotion by the State College Spikes, the minor league baseball team that plays home games across the street from Beaver Stadium. Minor league teams are always at the front of great promotions, and this one must have been one of the easiest to come up with.

Photo via StateCollege.com

Yesterday's news about Steven Bench being released from his scholarship by Penn State seemed to come out of nowhere. Bench was reportedly informed by Bill O'Brien that he will not be receiving much more opportunity to win the starting job in the fall, suggesting Tyler Ferguson and incoming Christian Hackenberg have a bigger upside. With that, Bench asked to be released so he may pursue another opportunity to compete for a starting job elsewhere.

We'll explore this story more today on the site, but for now lets get to the Cup of Joe.

Some details of Bench's decision were shared by his father to Bob Flounders. [PennLive.com]

Tom Dienhart thinks Hackenberg will come out on top of Penn State's QB competition now. [Big Ten Network]

From yesterday, Penn State picked up a four-star wide receiver. [Nittany Lions Den]

Another day, another exit interview about Penn State's spring practices. [The B1G Time]

Is Penn State a contender or pretender in 2013? [ESPN.com]

What other position battles should you be paying attention to? [Onward State]

State College Spikes giving away 1,500 BOB-leheads. [Nittany Lions Den] [State College Spikes]

Around the Big Ten

Zach Zwinak (6th) and Akeel Lynch (17th) are among the top running backs in the Big Ten. [Athlon Sports]

The Rose Bowl turns 100. [The B1G Time]

Let's put a cap on further expansion talks in the Big Ten. [Sporting News]

Or not? [The Oklahoman]

In Scores of Other Games...

Cowboys Stadium will host the first College Football Playoff championship game. [Crystal Ball Run]

Will we ever see a Penn State assistant coach share Photo shops on Twitter? [Crystal Ball Run]

Site News

Crystal Ball Run will be having a Google+ hangout on Friday. Feel free to drop by.

Follow Nittany Lions Den on Twitter, Google+ and Facebook.

Penn State's three-man quarterback competition in 2013 has been trimmed to two. Penn State announced on Wednesday afternoon that quarterback Steven Bench has been granted a full release from his scholarship. Just days ago head coach Bill O'Brien was saying Bench will be in competition for the starting quarterback job in 2013 as spring practices wrapped up.

"I have been meeting with all the players this week with my evaluation of where they are at related to football and academics and to discuss what they need to work on this summer," O'Brien said. "After meeting with Steven, he informed me he wants to play elsewhere. We want what is best for Steven. I want to thank him for his contributions to the program. We wish Steven the best in the future and will assist him anyway we can."

Penn State picked up their third verbal commitment of the month of April, and second in three days late Tuesday night. Chris Godwin, a consensus four-star wide receiver out of Delaware, has given a verbal to the Nittany Lions.

"I committed to Penn State," Godwin told Lions 247. "I think it came to me recently, I kind of realized that it was the best place for me. I feel real comfortable there with the coaching staff and I feel like that's my best opportunity to develop as a player and as a person.

Good morning Penn State fans. And a good morning it truly is for Penn State. While you were sleeping, perhaps, Penn State added a new star recruit to the Class of 2014. That's good news! Also, the college football playoff has a new name and you have a chance to vote for the logo!

On to this morning's Cup of Joe...

The NFL Draft begins tomorrow. Optimum Scouting gave us a look at how some Penn State players stack up in a Q&A. [Nittany Lions Den]

Penn State added a four-star wide receiver to Class of 2014 with Delaware prospect Chris Godwin offering a verbal commitment. [Nittany Lions Den]

Wrapping up the spring football news and themes. [The Saturday Edge]

The NFL Draft gets underway Thursday night in New York City with the first round. The second and third rounds will be held Friday and the draft will wrap up on Saturday with rounds four through seven. How many Penn State players will get to hear their name called, and when might they get that opportunity to have their name chosen by an NFL franchise?

To get a sense of where some Penn State prospects fit in with this year's NFL Draft I invited Eric Galko, Director of Scouting for Optimum Scouting to answer a few draft-related questions. Optimum Scouting is one of the best NFL Draft outlets out there and they have partnered with The Sporting News to provide their experty analysis with a larger audience this year. Optimum Scouting also has a full NFL Draft guide available for an affordable price and it is a great resource if you are looking for some NFL Draft material.

Q: It does not seem as though Penn State has a huge haul of NFL talent for the draft but fans are keeping a close eye on some defensive players. Where do you predict Jordan Hill, Michael Mauti and Gerald Hodges will end up going?

A: I’d guess Hodges is the first of the group to get drafted, likely in the 4th round range. Mauti likely falls because of his injury history, but a team picking late in the 5th may feel he’s “worth the risk”, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s the best linebacker in this class if he can recover from his injuries and stay healthy.

Hill’s ability to play on the inside and away from his body should intrigue 4-3 and 3-4 teams, and the 6th round area sounds about right for him.

The off-season is officially here for Penn State. Recruiting and a spring practice schedule is now in the books and that means it is time to officially look forward to the 2013 season. After the Blue White Game this past weekend, I think there are some reasons to feel optimistic about the upcoming season. We'll be here for you along the path to MetLife Stadium with some daily links for recommended reading and more.

He can play multiple positions, but defensive coordinator John Butler says Adrian Amos will play safety. (Onward State)

Penn State added a four-star wide receiver to the Class of 2014, with De'Andre Thompkins getting on board. (Victory Bell Rings)

Speaking of recruiting, could Penn State be focusing a little too much on skill position players? (Black Shoe Diaries)

The B1G Time steps back on to the hard court with a look back at the Penn State men's basketball season.

By the way, 130 days until Penn state and Syracuse kick off in MetLife Stadium.